Self-winding electric clock.



PATENTED MAY '22, 1906 L B. TROPPL SELF WINDING ELECTRIC CLOCK.

APPLIUATION FILED JULY 16.1904.

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To a/Z whmn it may cmwem Be it kncwn that I, BEHNHARB TKO-2P citizen of the United Stet-es, and a resident ,4 New York, in the ccuno y' of New York will C i I 44 L otete of N ew York, (Whose ccswcihcc scdrcss is 193 Greenwich. stla'eeig) have invented certain new and e s'efui I1m rcvemenbs 111 Winding Mechenismffor Checks, following is a specificetion.

I My invention reietes to, an improved eel Wi11(iin device for clocks 01* other driven y aspring or Weight and. in which the Winding device consists cf electric 1110+ periodically thrown info action and emficm lcsiiy thrown cut cf act-i011 when e eufiicieci; amount of power has stcred.

One of the specie objects of 1: 1y ili'vensioxris to secure a device by means c3 which power shall be stored to exactly the same amount for each application of the Winding jQOWElU Another object of my invention tc' pmduce a device which shell be simple mni ei fective in operation and ccpcbie being readily used with or applied to saw cidinei'y spring driven ti'ain 0i 'W'hQ8iS--- i 1i\@ "fer ID stance, e clock-brain. I

My inveniion relates more pei'izicui c the circuit closing and. 5.}: devices n 511 ch throw the electric met-c1 '1 its) swim-011i 0i sc- 'tion and involves the emplcyzicent d2 psi? of circuit closing end cracking devices, (me 2 which is s :zimery circuit-close: V the driven mechanism and the ctllei cf whic fiz is a secondary circuitloser eoei 37cm sbme poriioin cf the winding mechm e end which comes into act-ion sccz'i es se wil. ing mechanism is bycught see action by the action of the'primcry circuivcicser main-- veins the circuit anti the Winding pregresscd to a predc'bermiueii or e-mcwl when said seccndery circuit-cic er iiseeks circuit, the primary circuivclcs 'n the meal; time having also broken said; ciscuit;

My invention ccnsists in. the ncwei ccmiai nation of apparatus and details 01 cc tics more pcrticuleny iiez'eisicfter c -eseif and then set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying,drawings,

a side elevetionci an apparatus embccij'ingz my invemion cmi shows she came be s 010015.. is en end eievetion cf ifs/e same apparatus. Fig. 3 is s cieteil showing she circuibclcsing le /ices in plan.

"'1 m cszes e iigseme of @he usual dissects which the in which is mcuntei euitcbi e time-train driven by e suiteicie "p ng S, cm: end (if which is secwed 21c shaft ,Wheei f2, gesai hinders'tcci's' amt.

she meinspring-bane in; tinniiig 6e wnich the spying Wcutuci Eli) 001k necked t0 said barre is Wheel 5, 56 w i1 9 single tug-n is given pericciiceiiy the purpcse c'f keepmg the swing Weu" J1. The Winding power is qv bc-sined. 1mm e11 eieetric mote: geared to wheel is my suitseie 11 e1, said meter 0.? my c011.-

in the present instance I have sbcvm my invention carried 0 with e 'viqm'ioz-y 01:, re cipreceting electric I 1" of type and ccmprising eiec gust 6., Whose airmemie 7 is securedtc s ievei' 8, piw'cteci'm; 5 and carrying at its lower end a aw 18- Which as she lever Vibrstesimns the wheel 11. Se mermer, t me entsw else she wiz'idiegfireini Th s the eiectrcmegn net 55, SiliTWi'L, 2* 1d.

--ti1e six-mews ewe} magnet 931d. m so doing ceases periiei m5 of -zfihe Wneei 1i she Wi'fb 10h. c'icvez neni "pesbed tixrcugh .v temstic cc'iicn of 1e til it dose? brea-pkcr, the pain 23s of Wnich are indicated at 26 and. which of "the ordinary ccnstructicn adapted m cicse time ciircuit of the eficezi/rclei; WEE-en is rem-2 cei'i and 1 0 break the same when the are.

' Ed, time securing a). i 1.011 be same Illflill'li)? as is "l i 'abcry' sier1n-beiL lhe between the magnet and "wsimfiy pm pcss 4)? giving the icmi cciveenege to We magnet and per iming the of c email megnesler mote): Wmd 2551s sm'mg. S1211 me iLdfiESUINfini-S *1; eus character mic ienc -11 are pl" 0.,

meems c: the sficpscicc centecis at 20 e217 1" under-steed in the eFL'L. scribed Wiii spew i piied thereto 11 Lien bet-ween iiei; s5 izmric energyi.

21. end. 2-2 for he sprmg Tine mom 23 is the contact-s ring of what I term the primary circuit-clbser', by means of which the circuit of the motor is closed and broken. Said sprin like the spring 24 of what I term ,a secon ary circuit-closer, may be his for t e motor, owing to the fact that the train of wheels and the framework of the clock are made a part of the circuit, as usual in the art. The spring 24 closes the same circult by the action of some device connected with the winding mechanism train. For convemence and simplicity I p ose to employ for this purpose the mainspringdrum 4, which is provided at some pointiir its periphery with the notch 28 or other insulating-space which breaks the circuit when the Winding has been accomplished. As

' soon as the windin begins again the insulating-space passesirom under the spring 24, and the latter then closes circuit on the periphery of the drum. By placing the stud 27 on the hour-Wheel it is obvious that the winding would take place hourly onl It is plain, however, that said stud mig it belo cated on some otherwheel of the train, so as to close the circuit of the motor at more ireueiit intervals. By causing the break and c osing of circuit by means of spring 24 to take place by. means of the mainsprings drum, as shown, havin but one circuitbreaking s ace 28, it is obvious that at each winding t e spring will be wound up one whole turn. It is plain, however, that the secondary circuit-closer 24 nught be operated from some other; art'of the winding train or mechanism, so t at the spring would be wound up to a less extent for every time that the motor is brought into action.- There is, however, an advantage in operating the primary and secondary circuit-closers in the manner described by means of the winding drum and thejhour-wheel, since they may then be located at the same point and form parts of the same piece of metal secured to the same support, thus giving compactness andsimplicit of construction. It will also be obvious t at by" operatin said circuitclosers b T the means describe I am, enabled to' readi y apply my invention to existing clock mechanisms, it beingonly necessary to insert a stud 27 in the hourovheel and to 10- date a slot 28 in the mainspring-drum, as described, the mainspring-shai't being provided also with a winding-wheel 5.

The circuits may be formed in any desired ing connected to a battery or other source of electrode energy. The two springs 23 24 on the support insulated from the iramework may be electrically connected in any suitable way with the pole of the source opposite that to which the coil of the electromagnet is connected.

The operation of the apparatus would be as follows: Normally the mechanism would be in condition indicated in 1, in which, as shown, the wheel 26 performing rotation in the direction of" the arrow under the power of the spring The sprim 24: of the secondary circuit-closer has its endjrestim in the notch 28, and inasmuch as the stud 27 has in the condition of the apparatus shown left the spring 23 there is no circuit completed through the motor, the armature-lever of which, 8, rests against its back contact. When the wheel 26 rotates sufficiently to bring the stud 27 in wiping contact with the end of the spring 23, the circuit of the motor will be closed and the latter will immediately begin to wind the spring 3 and will continue to wind it until by the movement of the drum 4 of the winding mechanism the circuit for the motor has been. closed by the secondary closer 24c. in the meantime the pin 27 momentarily maintains closure of circuit on the spring 28 and until the circuit has been closed b spring 2 1, at any desired time after which t e stud or pin 27 may open the circuit on the spring 23, which it will proceed to do, inasmuch as the wheel 26 maintains constant movement, owing to the provision of a considerable surplus or reserve power in the spring 3 over and above that necessary to produce a single revolution of the Wheel 26. The circuit of the motor is now maintained by the spring 24. and Winding goeson untii by the moves out of the winding mechanism the notch insulating soacc 28 has been brought under the end of the spring 24, whereupon the circuit of the motor is interrupted, owing to the fact that the circuit on. the primary circuit-closer 23 has in the merit of the wheel 26 and pin 27 The Winding then ceases to be repeated, when thepower of the spring 3 has been expended sufiiclently to cause the circuit to be again closed on the primary circuit-closer.

While I have described my invention as applied to the winding up of a spring, it is ob vlous that it might be used for periodically vice.

. eeniec not limited to use with the driving power for member carried by a clock, but might be used with the driving power for any mechanism. What I claim as my invention is" 1. The combination substantially as described of a driving power, a driven mechanism, an electric motor, winding mechanism interposed between the same and the driving power, a primary circuit-closer, comprising a stationary contact member and a cooperating contact member carried b a Wheel of the driven mechanism for perio ically but mementarily closing the circuit of the motor at one point, and a secondary independentlyoperating circuit-closer comprising a fixed contact member and, a coo crating contact a whee connected with the winding mechanism.

2. The combination in a self-winding mechanism of a spring-driven train, an electric motor for periodically winding said spring, a circuit-ciosing device in 'the'circuit of said motor comprising a pin or projection on a wheel of the driven train and a spring, periodicaliy but momentarily engaged thereby, and a second circuit-closer in the circuit of 'said motor, comprising the barrel of the spring having an insulating-space, and cooperating spring engaging said barrel.

3. The combination with a time keeping device, of a winding electric motor, primary circuit-closer, in the circuit of said motor, consisting of a contact-pin set in the hour wheel of the train and adapted to engage a circuit-closing spring, and a secondary circuit-closer comprising a spring-barrel having an insulating notch or space and a co6perat-- ing circuit-closing spring, as and for the pur pose described.

4. In a self-winding mechanism for clocks, the combination with an electric motor and a winding-barrel operated by said motor, of a primary circuit-closer comprising a pin or stud projecting from a wheel of the clock rain and adapted to engage a cooperating circuit-closing spring, and a secondar circuit-closer consisting of awinding-barre having an insuiated space and a cooperating contact-spring adapted to engage said barrel.

5. in a winding mechanism for springdriven timepieces, the combination of an electric motor, a winding-train interposed between the same and the spring, a secondary circuit-closer brought into action by a revoiving member of the Winding-train when the winding starts, and a primary circuit-closer brought into action by a pin or stud rojecting from a wheel of the time-train an adapted to close the circuit of the motor to start the winding. q

6. In a self-winding mechanism for clocks, the combination of an electric motor and two circuit-closers therefor, one consistin of a s'iring 23 and a stud 27 on the hour-wheel of t e clock, and the other consistinglof a sprin 24 engaging the periphery of t e notche spring-barrelL Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 6th day of July, A. D. 1904.

BERNHARD TROPP. Witnesses:

G. F. TISCHNER, Jr., Z0 ANNA B. TALLMAN. 

